Giada De Laurentiis' Simple Formula For Fast Frittatas

Fritattas are a breakfast and cafe item known by name to many, but how many people actually know what goes into making one? Fans of the movie Morning Glory may recall Harrison Ford's character making a frittata from scratch in his kitchen while Rachel McAdams' character scrambled to get him out the door, and if you've seen that, you may remember parts of his run-through later in the movie (as recounted by Jezebel).

But the frittata actually has deeper origins than a minor plot device in a Harrison Ford movie. According to DeLallo, the dish got its name from the Italian word friggere, which means "to fry" and serves as "home food," so you'd rarely find it when dining out. It is primarily made of egg, but also features mix-ins — which differentiates it from an omelette onto which ingredients are placed and folded over. As frittatas are usually viewed as a last-minute or last-resort dish, and the add-ins typically consist of leftovers or random foods in the fridge. In Italy, sometimes even pasta is mixed in. So how does queen of Italian food Giada De Laurentiis recommend throwing the dish together?

Giada De Laurentiis spoke to Mind Body Green about how she used food to help her get healthier and the humble frittata was a staple in doing so. Known for her Italian-inspired meals, pasta is usually a heavily featured food, perhaps even making it as a food group in its own right for any Italian chef. But when it comes to staying healthy, De Laurentiis says the food she was eating was starting to make her sick, noting to the site, "Over the last decade, it became impossible to ignore the fact that the choices I had been making for the last 20 years just weren't working for me anymore."

One of her favorite "recipe-free" meals to make is a frittata, which she advises you can create yourself by grabbing and sautéeing "greens or roasted veggies into beaten eggs." Simple as that. Next time you're lacking breakfast (or lunch or dinner) ingredients, try this protein-filled, no-recipe delight!